I'll Be Seeing You (1944) User Reviews (43)

an underrated gem

[FrancescaRella · 8/10 · 25 January 2008]

I didn't know what I was going to see when I first watched this film. It's not big and splashy but it's a quiet film that I almost overlooked. I'm so glad I didn't. This movie made me a fan of Ginger Rogers and Joseph Cotten even more. It's an amazing movie and the ending was a great twist. The quiet and subtle performances are what made it more personal. It's one movie that is overlooked that shouldn't be. It's a small and quiet film, but it's a great one at that.

I'm used to seeing Ginger Rogers either dancing around with Fred Astaire or playing a chorus girl in a show that is struggling, but this movie has shown me how much talent she really had. And I only saw Joseph Cotten in Citizen Kane and Since You Went Away. This movie made me take notice and see how good he was as a leading man and actor.

The story is simple and is perfectly played that way. Although it might seem a little too melodramatic and hokey, it's really not. For anyone interested in old movies, I would recommend it to them. This needs to be on television and seen a lot more.

Boy with Past Meets Girl with Past

[PretoriaDZ · 8/10 · 30 April 2009]

Joseph Cotten's character Zack suffers from anxiety attacks. A vivid scene showing him have one would be good for people who do suffer from such attacks. His voice-over, talking to himself, telling himself that is isn't real, is exactly right because in the middle of one, nothing else in the world feels so real. He also gives Ginger Roger's character Mary a good description of what it feels like in a big battle - the only thing you experience is what's right in front of you, not how they show it in the movies with panoramic knowledge.

One thing that is missing from the movie is any idea of what prison is like for Mary. I have heard of work release from prison but never vacations from prison.

There is some nice gentle humor sprinkled throughout, particularly between Mary's uncle and his daughter, played by Shirley Temple. He chastises her for playing her music too loud and it's amusing to think that "war" has been going on for 70 years! I believe that "small", character driven stories like this stay with viewers much longer than the explosive, quick cut turkeys Hollywood seems to want to make today.

I'll Be Seeing You is worth looking for

[johno-21 · 8/10 · 8 March 2006]

This is a kind of forgotten Christmas or Christmas-themed movie. I've only seen this a few times on TV over the years but this is a good movie. Ginger Rogers doesn't sing or dance here but she puts in an excellent dramatic performance as a woman on furlough for the holidays from prison. Joseph Cotton is the soldier on leave from the front lines of World War II. Both have psychological problems and no significant other to help them through. David O. Selznick is executive producer here but this film doesn't have the look of an Selznick film with giant sets and big interior shots and sweeping landscapes. Selznick doesn't put his name on it and Dore Schary is Producer but Selznick had the final say in how this was done. William Dieterle directs. He had renowned success with such films as The Hunchback of Notre Dame and The Devil & Daniel Webster and would go on to direct Portrait of Hennie, Love Letters, Dark City and September Affair among others. Selznick is reported to have not liked this script and tried changes that Dieterle basically ignored but Selnick did call in director George Cukor to re shoot a scene critical to the plot that involved Shirley Temple. Joan Fontaine was originally offered the Rogers role and this may have been a very different picture with Fontaine starring opposite Cotton but I think Rogers was better for this role and brought more strength and hardness to the character that Fontaine would have been too delicate and vulnerable in. Shirley Temple in her transition from child star into adult roles delivers a fine performance from the supporting cast which also includes Chill Wills and a young John Derek. This film was adapted from the Charles Martin radio play Double Furlough by screenwriter Martin Parsonette. I would give this an 8.0 out of a possible 10 and recommend it.

One of My Favorites

[PrairieCal · 20 April 2003]

Criticize this movie as you will, call it schlocky, or cornball, or whatever, it will always be one of my favorites ... perhaps because it was one of the first late night tv movies I ever got to stay up late and watch at 12 yrs old. I lapped up this sentimental romance like a puppy laps up cream. It didn't occur to me to take it any way but seriously. And years later the sound of two stones hitting a lamp post at the end still makes my spine tingle.

Everyone else has outlined the plot, I'd just like to point out something really interesting. Ginger was around 33 when she made this movie playing a girl in her early twenties. And each time there's a close up of her face at Christmas, it's obvious the lens has been coated with vaseline or something... she looks softer and hazier than anyone else in the movie. "I'll Be Seeing You" is the epitome of old 1940's sentimental romances. And if you like that sort of thing, you'll love this one.

A heart warming drama

[Calysta · 7/10 · 28 December 1999]

Although I enjoyed the talents of Ginger Rogers more in her infamous teamings with Fred Astaire, and her comic abilities in the Katharine Hepburn movie "Stage Door", she cannot at least be given some credit for her fine dramatic acting as well, of which pleasantly surprised me. Her portrayal a woman convicted for manslaughter, is inspirational, as her character helps a suffering soldier find solace, while attempting to hide the secret she dreads will threaten his full recovery.

With Joseph Cotten and Shirley Temple in the supporting cast, the movie is nonetheless up to mainstream Hollywood standards. I did find that the movie was a little light on the drama in some parts, in comparison to later Hollywood films like Audrey Hepburn's "The Nun's Story", but the romance story was lovely.

Definitely a must for Ginger Rogers fans, and fans of a good old fashioned Hollywood flick in the best style that they just don't make anymore. Rating: 8/10

A Lovely Surprise !

[nicholas.rhodes · 9/10 · 29 January 2005]

I usually gobble up 1940's romantic movies like freshly made creamed rice pudding, so I was most surprised to see this on DVD whilst looking for something else ! For the occasion, I gave in to an impulse and came home with the DVD in my bags ! This is not normal as I only usually buy DVD's of films I know and like.

The "risk" paid off ........ I thoroughly enjoyed the film, of course, I dearly love both of the main actors and am also fairly fond of Shirley Temple ( it's a change to see her as an adolescent instead of as a small kid ). Although the beginning of the film is a tad slow, the whole outfit soon warms up and of course viewer suspense is maintained by asking oneself when each one of the couple will discover the "terrible" secret of the other. It's an old and tried formula, but the hard fact is that it WORKS ! The only unpleasant moment is a frighteningly savage dog attack on Mr Cotten - which I wasn't expecting - and left me momentarily breathless (let's face it, those big white teeth were impressive !!!). I am happy to have this film as part of my DVD collection and would highly recommend it to all of you who are smitten with 1940's style romanticism !

surprisingly good

[rupie · 7/10 · 18 September 2000]

"Maltin's" comment implies this is a soapy chick flick. Actually this guy found it quite intriguing, right from the opening scene, which raises our curiosity about Cotten's character. The shady background of Roger's character is also a "secret" that keeps the movie going. It is Cotten's excellent portrayal of this disturbed soldier that "makes" the movie.

Found myself crying like an idiot...I love old-fashioned romances

[applenia88 · 10/10 · 15 February 2011]

There's nothing I can say....usual sentimental torture...Gosh I love this stuff! Some will find it a bit old-fashioned in timing and plot. I'm maybe old-fashioned myself, but I think the story is very beautiful. Ginger Rogers is (she's one of my favorites!) really good, a very underrated actress of that time...she could do anything and do it fine, with class and elegance. A real dramatic performer. Haven't seen Cotten before, he's a fine actor too! I like his reflective way of acting, the postures he takes when the voice comes in his head, which is a good idea of the director I guess...very effective, drags you into the character's inner feelings. They make a fine couple! But the real surprise is a grown Shirley Temple, whom can carry herself very well in drama too, a bit too exaggerate in the gestures, sometimes too simpering, after all she's an adolescent, but very good indeed! In the end I highly recommend this movie to everyone who hasn't seen it yet. For me (remember, I'm old-fashioned) rating is 10/10!

Well-Acted Drama

[kenjha · 7/10 · 26 December 2012]

A female convict on furlough for the holidays meets a soldier suffering from post-war trauma. The troubles of the two protagonists could have been handled more deftly, but the film does a very good job of depicting family life on the home front during WWII, helped by some good acting. Rogers is fine as the convict while Cotten is typically solid as the soldier. There are also natural, winning performances from Byington and Tull as Temple's caring parents, who host niece Rogers for the holidays. Future Hollywood Svengali Derek (husband of Ursula Andress, Linda Evans, and Bo Derek) gets his first screen credit in a small role as Temple's date.

Proves the old adage, "you are as sick as your secrets."

[349th Heavy Weapons Crew · 8/10 · 23 June 2000]

Good World War II romantic drama with excellent performances by Ginger Rogers, Joseph Cotton and 16-year old Shirley Temple.

"I'll Be Seeing You" looks at the effects of a kind of `battle fatigue' known then as "old sergeant's syndrome". This particular form of post-traumatic stress occurred in battle-seasoned noncommissioned officers. After a dreadful encounter with someone's guard dog Sgt. Zachary Morgan, on leave from an Army mental hospital, experiences a very realistic and dramatically effective "flash back". Through judicious camera editing you see Joseph Cotton affect the appropriate 'sweat response', as his forehead, chest, shoulders and armpits become progressively more sweat-drenched. Very realistic!

This movie also subtly delivers the message that none of us are perfect and that open-mindedness and compassion are virtues called for under difficult circumstances.

All The Old Familiar Places

[writers_reign · 6/10 · 24 December 2011]

This could almost have formed a segment of Since You Went Away which Joseph Cotton and Shirley Temple made that same year. It's also referential in borrowing the basic plot of One-Way Passage (itself remade as Till We Meet Again) substituting a train for an ocean liner but retaining the criminal and health elements; in One-Way Passage William Powell is a convict being escorted back to the States by a cop, Pat O'Brien, who meets on board ship Merle Oberon, who is terminally ill. Both conceal these rather important facts from the other and fall in love. This time around the roles are reversed and it is Ginger Rogers who is serving a prison sentence for manslaughter and has been released in order to spend Christmas with an aunt and Joseph Cotton who is not terminally ill but suffering with serious combat fatigue. Once again Rogers finds herself sharing a bedroom with a teenager and falling for a soldier - four years earlier she bunked with Diana Lynn in and fell for Ray Milland in Billy Wilder's The Major and the Minor. It's a pleasant, sentimental, hokey even, entry a reminder of how wholesome films used to be.

A pleasant little film...

[planktonrules · 8/10 · 29 November 2009]

It's funny, but despite having seen and reviewed a bazillion different movies, I'd never heard of this film until I saw it on Netflix recently. Since I really liked Joseph Cotten (a highly underrated actor, if you ask me), I thought I'd give it a try--and I am glad I did, as it's a dandy old film--full of sentiment and romance.

The film begins with Cotten meeting Ginger Rogers on a train. She is going to visit her Aunt and Uncle for the Christmas holiday, though he does not know that she's on furlough from prison. He is also on leave--from a military psychiatric hospital where he's recuperating from a serious injury as well as post-traumatic stress disorder. Considering he served on Guadalcanal (one of the longest and most horrible battles of the war), it's perfectly understandable that he is a bit of a mess. What is surprising, though, is that the movie even addresses this. Very, very few films made during or even soon after the war talked about the psychological effects of war. This one dared to talk about the psychiatric cases resulting from such horrors.

Partly because she is ashamed and partly because she doesn't want Cotten to be further burdened after she learns of his struggle, Rogers keeps her incarceration a secret to him. It's funny, because when you learn about why she was jailed, it seems that nowadays she'd never have served a day in prison as she accidentally killed a man who was trying to rape her!! I think the problem was that she couldn't prove it and juries were less likely to believe that rapes occurred back then. Regardless, she says nothing and they spend many lovely moments together during both their vacations. He, in particular, likes being able to hang out with her family, as he has none of his own.

There's much more to the film than this, but it gets very high marks not only for its willingness to talk about combat fatigue but because it is highly romantic and sweet. It's a great sentimental film that doesn't manage to get gooey or sickly sweet--just nice and a decent film for the holidays. Watch this hidden little gem.

World War II-Bringing Joy and Sadness into the lives of Two Lonely Souls.

[mark.waltz · 6/10 · 2 March 2013]

If there is ever a domestic drama of what we were fighting for this war for, this movie is the prototype for that kind of film. Two strangers, both in their own prisons, one physically and the other metaphorically, meet on a train, spend the Christmas holidays together, fall in love and must part. She is Ginger Rogers, in prison for manslaughter (on a charge that obviously should have been dismissed) and he is Joseph Cotten, suffering from severe shell-shock. They are star-crossed lovers fated to be parted, but with hope still lingering in their hearts, they will end up together.

Spring Byington and Tom Tryon are Rogers' gracious aunt and uncle, bringing temporary joy into their lives as the holidays come and go, from a very Merry Christmas to a romantic New Year's Eve. Each of them face psychological trauma (she is even afraid to step one inch beyond the state line which they arrive at while walking along the river bank) as their love grows, but they are soothed by the beautiful title song, one of the most fabulous war themes ever written, and still popular today. (A memorable "Designing Women" episode wisely utilized it as one of Jean Smart's character's fantasies).

Cotten's shell-shock is dealt with in the most subtle of ways, his manner changing when a group of boys run around the streets shooting toy guns, and an overly chatty soda jerk (Chill Wills) going on about his own war experiences. A frighting encounter with a vicious dog and some politicians who question Cotten about his political believes also subtly express the horrors that Cotten is feeling inside.

The only fly in the ointment is Shirley Temple, a precocious teenage girl who fulfills that well-known saying about good intentions. Her character wouldn't be so annoying if this wasn't an exact replica of practically every role she'd play during the 1940's, particularly in the same year's "Since You Went Away". Fortunately, the romance between Rogers and Cotten is so moving that it overshadows this minor mishap. While the lover's farewell scene isn't as famous as the Jennifer Jones/Robert Walker farewell in "Since You Went Away" (ironically produced by the same man as this film, David Selznick), it gives way to the feeling that in spite of its horrors, World War II was the most romantic war in history.

I can't see it

[weezeralfalfa · 4/10 · 21 February 2017]

This story is too slow, simple, and predictable for me. Furthermore, the premise of the plot is unrealistic. I can't believe any prison would let any inmates out on a holiday vacation, traveling wherever they wish! Either they are on parole or house arrest or they stay in prison until released. Similarly, I can't believe a mental hospital would allow a patient to go home or wherever during the holiday season unless they are considered an outpatient. As the story suggests, being out in a normal world may reduce mental symptoms if they find someone sympathetic to their problem. Shirley Temple is mainly decorative, exhibiting some of the characteristics of a teen at that time, but finally spilling the beans to Cotton that Ginger is a jailbird out on furlough..... Nearly a decade later, Joseph Cotton would again play a soldier suffering from lingering combat fatigue, in "Niagara", costarring Marilyn Monroe.

The title song is a classic, and we hear it during the opening credits, as well as at a dance. It was published in 1938, included that year in the Broadway play "Right This Way". Along with the film, several artists recorded it in 1944.

Refreshingly Corny and Charming

[ccthemovieman-1 · 15 October 2005]

Old-fashioned corn, romance and nice, wholesome people - just what the sick movie critics hate.....but I find refreshingly nice to see. Yes, it's dated, but that's part of the charm.

In this movie, people say their prayers, sing hymns, are respectful to one another, are considerate, etc. Unfortunately, they exhibit a trait that Hollywood has always loved to portray: they lie or, if you prefer, they cover up the truth. Here, Rogers does it, trying to hide her past while Cotten almost does the same, but comes clean early on.

Other than that, it's a throwback-to-the-more-wholesome-past film that, while it might be a bit slow in parts, features interesting lead characters by famous actors of their day: Joseph Cotten, Ginger Rogers and Shirley Temple. The latter is almost as entertaining as when she was the incredible child star but it was strange to see her in a role where she's trying to show off her chest! Yikes! Well, I guess you can't play a little kid forever.

Even though they were famous, Cotten and Rogers, I believe, were two of the most underrated actors of their day, particularly Rogers who was far more than just a great dancer.

Two casualties have a romance

[howardmorley · 6/10 · 18 November 2009]

The other users have described the plot so no further comment is necessary therefore I will restrict myself to the acting and character portrayals.This film was produced in the same year that "Since You Went Away" was released by Selznick and contains two actors in that film, Shirley Temple and Joseph Cotton.It certainly did not have the same budget or production values as the aforesaid film, so I could only award it 6/10 as it is a rather straightforward "romcom".

Todays liberal 2009 UK/(US?) courts would probably have given Ginger Rogers' character Mary an absolute discharge where she had no previous convictions and where the prosecution and defence teams agree that no useful purpose would be served to society giving the accused defendant a custodial sentence.However in 1944 the justice system was more severe and literal.To show Ginger Rogers could do straight dramatic roles look no further than "Kitty Foyle" (1940) for which she won her best actress "Oscar".Ginger was 33 when she acted this role so was a little mature but William Dieterle gave her soft focus lens close-ups and a youthful dress to take a few years off her age.

This was the first time I had seen this film which is surprising as I thought I knew most popular 1940s films, it certainly has not been seen on UK TV network stations to my knowledge.After having seen Hitchcock's acclaimed "Shadow of a Doubt" (1943),I was preparing myself for Joseph Cotton to perform another "Uncle Charlie" role especially as he appeared to have suffered psychiatric medical problems.However this suspicion was allayed early on and "Zach" became more normal as the film progressed.One thing puzzled me. How did Zach know which prison to wait for Mary and when she would be returning there especially as she and her relatives had not given him its address.The ending was rather sappy but presumably done to cheer up war time audiences.Also I do wish directors would insist on actors carrying a full suitcase as an empty one is obvious when someone attempts to pick it up, i.e. Mary's initial arrival at her Aunt & Uncle's house.This fault in leaving home scenes still persists in todays soaps/films, despite cinema verite.

A sentimental favorite of mine

[AlsExGal · 8/10 · 14 April 2013]

I'll Be Seeing You captures the loneliness of two people who - besides their own serious problems - just don't fit into the bustling wartime image we often see of America in film during that time.The opening scene is in a busy train station. We quickly focus in on two travelers. She (Ginger Rogers as Mary Marshall) is uncomfortable when she tries first to buy a stick of gum and then a chocolate bar and is rebuffed by the sales clerk as though she had been asking to buy gold bullion at a five and dime. He (Joseph Cotten as Zachary Morgan) is uncomfortable because he wants to buy reading material and all that is available is full of news about the war and images that you can tell make him squeamish.

Zach is suffering from what would be called PTSD today due to battle fatigue, and he's ashamed of that fact, afraid of winding up like the shell-shocked WWI soldier he knew as a boy.

Mary is a convict out on Christmas furlough, although what she is serving time for will probably be a shock to modern sensibilities - I know it was for me. She is also ashamed - understandably perhaps for being a convict, not so understandably for what she did to become one. I'll let you watch the movie and see what I'm talking about here.

Against this backdrop of people who feel badly for the positions they are in due to social mores of the 1940's - soldiers are always brave and good girls never get themselves into the position Mary got herself into, these two lonely people find each other and connect. At first Zach lies to Mary about his situation, but then tells her the truth. Mary chooses to keep the truth from Zach, partly because she loves him and doesn't want to lose him, but mainly because her company is making him well - he says her self-confidence is giving him confidence - and she doesn't want to set back his recovery.

Mary is staying with her aunt, uncle, and cousin during the holidays, and this warm family setting has both of them healing just a bit. Shirley Temple plays the cousin that is too young to know why Mary is in prison or wear lipstick according to her parents, but is apparently old enough to go out unchaperoned with a Lieutenant on leave who is probably five years older than she! Spring Byington plays the aunt who is supportive overall but still drops phrases from time to time that leave you wondering about the overall wisdom of her advise. For example, she keeps telling Mary to settle for second best and pretend it's first best - that's what she did!. Rather wacky advice by today's standards, but maybe mainstream feelings for people who married during the roaring twenties, and then raised a family during the depression and world war.

I highly recommend this sentimental favorite of mine. I'm rather surprised it hasn't become more of a Christmas standard, because even though in many ways it is a unique snapshot in time, the story of two lonely people finding each other in a world that would probably judge them severely if they were open about their problems is universal.

Bringing strength to each other

[Prismark10 · 6/10 · 13 December 2017]

A pleasant film about two damaged people. Mary Marshall (Ginger Rogers) was jailed for manslaughter and has been given leave to spend time with her aunt and uncle over Christmas.

She meets on the train Zachary Morgan (Joseph Cotten) who is having treatment in a military hospital for shell shock. The two get along, exchange details, go for dinner, a movie but are reluctant to tell each other the truth about themselves.

We see Zachary getting irritated when he is reminded of his experiences of the war. Meanwhile Mary tells her young cousin that she accidentally killed her boss who tried to seduce her.

This is a slightly cliched, melancholic and hokey tale of two lost and rather vulnerable people.

" I'll Be Seeing You Every Christmas "

[PamelaShort · 8/10 · 30 September 2013]

This is not a traditional Christmas movie, but it is set a week before Christmas and ends just after the New Year. For that reason, I do watch this film every holiday season, because it captures the old fashioned family and Christmas mood so well. Yes the story may be a little bit overly maudlin, and off-beat, but somehow it works, and remember this is the 1940s. The cast is a perfect ensemble for this story. Joseph Cotten plays a shell-shocked soldier, his doctors have furloughed him for the Christmas holidays, and he encounters Ginger Rogers, on a train going to visit her relatives for the holidays, but she has a dark secret, she to is on a furlough from prison. Joseph Cotten gives a marvellously balanced performance, that creates real depth to his character. Ginger Rogers acting is very pleasing, for you can really feel how hard it is for her to keep the secret hidden from Cotten, making her character's quandary all the more believable. Shirley Temple was a real teenager when this film was made, and she is perfect for her part, sweet but as all teenagers are, thinks she is just as smart as the adults. Spring Byington is her usual warm and lovable self as the Aunt of Rogers and Temple's mother. Tom Tully rounds out the cast as Byington's laid-back, understanding husband. Put it all together and surprisingly you have a lovely, heartwarming story, chock full of sentiment. I suggest it's worth a look.

One of My Favorites

[utgard14 · 7/10 · 1 December 2013]

Beautiful story about a female convict (Ginger Rogers) and a shell-shocked solider (Joseph Cotton) who meet on a train and, over the course of the next few days, fall in love. It's a sweet, charming, romantic movie that's also very grown-up. These are both adult characters with adult problems and yet the film manages to handle this all very well without cynicism. It's a very rare thing, then and now, to have a romantic drama that is neither too sentimental or too pragmatic. It's a slow and soft film, perhaps too slow for many, but worth giving a try. This is an uncelebrated classic from director William Dieterle with two wonderful stars turning in terrific performances. There's also a teenage Shirley Temple, whose acting is less subtle than the others, but not so much it derails the movie. The seasonal backdrop usually means TCM shows it near Christmas so please check it out if you enjoy old movies and love stories.

A reflection of the nation's feelings

[devenhunsaker · 9/10 · 12 September 2020]

A woman wrongfully imprisoned for self-defense. A soldier suffering from PTSD. A teenage girl trying to understand her convict cousin, while trying to get ahead in her own life. These characters, all underdogs in their own way, were reflections of how Americans were feeling at the time. This movie came out a year before the end of the war, and three years in, Americans were tired. The nation was rationed, mothers had lost sons, and people just wanted to get back to normal. (Let's not forget that we entered the war just after the end of the Great Depression). I love movies like this because the message to war-time America is palpable. And come on, Ginger, Joseph Cotton, and Shirley Temple? What more could you ask for? Incredible performances, a wonderful score, and a very relatable plot of love, heartbreak, and survival. Watch this movie!!!

I'll Be Seeing You

[Scarecrow-88 · 7/10 · 18 December 2015]

Low-key, very simple Christmas time (although the film doesn't emphasize the season so dutifully as other films set in the holiday often do) developing romantic melodrama. Ginger Rogers (her career on fire at this time) is serving time for an accidental murder (manslaughter as a struggle caused the victim to go out a 14-story window!) and given a furlough (leave for an 8-day vacation with her relatives (Spring Byington, Tom Tully, and Shirley Temple)) for the holidays. She meets Joseph Cotten, a well-decorated soldier who is currently on leave due to psychological issues stemming from WWII (early precursor to PTSD). Their problems are kept secret from each other, but the truth is bound to eventually surface.

Although O. Selznick has his name all over it, I didn't necessarily think this little film was full of bombast, pomp or circumstance. Both Rogers and Cotten deliver very subdued performances, and I think the film is all the better for it. There's no shouting matches or clinched teeth, just adults learning to grapple with the difficulties of life while falling in love with each other. I realize this might seem like a plot full of soap opera sap, but I think the characters are developed in a way that isn't too tiresome. In the vein of 40s melodramas, you could do a lot worse than this.

While Cotten is quietly dealing with demons that torment him--but doing so by not embellishing his emotional troubles as if boxing them away to deal with on his own--Rogers endures the knowledge that she is on a short trip, her sentence not yet over, and the holidays provides just a momentary release.

The film is, by and large, a romance. Shirley Temple is a teenager crazy about soldier boys, and her innocence and naïveté is rather amusing. Her mother, Byington (I know her from Werewolf of London (1935)) stays real busy around the house cooking and cleaning, as well as, managing her household. She admits in one scene that she married "down", recognizing her lot in life (kind of sad, but we see that her joy with her husband seems quite legit), to Rogers when the two talk about the past, present, and future. Rogers is the kind of actress that can make dialogue about "wanting a normal life, a family and future" when contemplating her current situation authentically without falling prey to the overwrought or turning on the waterworks too much. Cotten, even when attacked by a dog during a rather startling scene, always maintains his resolve, walking away when he gets unsettled or bothered. One key scene has him in sweats and clinched fists in room he stays temporarily. Another has the one and only Chill Wills describing a war experience and taking it to the enemy (but surrendered to a diner waiter due to a twitch) as Cotten must walk out because he can't take it anymore. Even the ending, after learning the truth from gabby Shirley and distancing himself from her due to surprise, Cotten doesn't go overboard…he's silent and introspective. And when the two lovebirds finally embrace, it is nicely played in a rather modest, not overly dramatic way. Probably not the ideal "Christmas movie", but a possible treat for those who love these kinds of 40s melodrama. Good cast helps a great deal.

I'll Be Seeing You-Family Value Film ****

[edwagreen · 10/10 · 14 January 2013]

Ginger Rogers gives a restrained performance as a quiet victimized young lady who is sent to prison after accidentally pushing her drunken boss out the window.

While on furlough, she meets Joseph Cotten, who is battle scarred. The two strike up a memorable friendship, and Rogers tries to keep it from him where she is going back to.

Tom Tully and Spring Byington are just wonderful as the aunt and uncle she goes to during her leave. She brings Cotten to their home and they accept him with dignity and kindness. They are a wholesome couple promoting wonderful family values. Shirley Temple is their teenager daughter, outspoken, but kind in this 1944 film.

Of course, the picture proves that you can't hide things; they have a way of coming out. Nevertheless, the performances by Cotten and Ms. Rogers are warm and memorable.

Double Furlough

[richardchatten · 7/10 · 14 November 2019]

Part of the fascination of watching old movies is finding topics still hot being addressed far back in the Good Old Days.

In the case of 'I'll Be Seeing You' it's that beneath it's extremely glossy veneer this movie concerned itself 75 years ago with issues still contentious today: traumatised war veterans, sexually predatory employers and the rehabilitation of offenders.

Hoary, ridiculously contrived and miscast star-vehicle...

[moonspinner55 · 4/10 · 31 December 2015]

Ginger Rogers looks a little mature to be a single gal still holding onto her virtue; here, as a convicted felon out on a furlough for the Christmas holiday, the actress is supposed to be wistful and vulnerable, but she appears seasoned. Framed in flashback (which certainly doesn't help matters), Rogers is revealed to have killed her boss by accident--a wolf on the make, he was standing too close to an open window--but her story apparently didn't wash in court as she was packed off to the pokey. As a sergeant also on leave, Joseph Cotten has his own problems (deep-seated, it appears), but there's nothing much else to this plot beyond the obvious: when will he find out she's a jailbird? As Rogers' cousin, Shirley Temple is almost as miscast as Ginger; groomed and trained to always give her all, Temple's impersonation of a 'typical' American teenager is a little bit frightening (casual, flip talk doesn't come easily to Shirley, she's too eager to punch her scenes across). An old-fashioned weepie in the worst sense, the movie is cobwebby with clichés and contrivances that should have smart viewers saying "I'll be seeing you" long before the end credits. ** from ****